I guess I am in the minority. I drove both, could afford either, and wound up with an E90 335xi. On public roads I can't even push the 335 to the limit so an M3 is out of the question. In addition, I am not going to track my car so why pay the extra money for a couple of ticks in the quarter mile? For day to day driving, the 335 was a better choice for me: better low end torque, AWD grip in inclement North East weather, better gas mileage and enough handling prowess to keep a spirited driver entertained. I picked up an inexpensive/mild tune (SSTT) and am happy with it.

I have owned both E36 and E46 M3s and both were brilliant. The difference is that they were far and away the best 3 series. IMO, the lines of separation in this iteration are a bit more blurry.

I feel both the M3 and the 335 fulfill their respective visions quite well. For some people with more conservative needs, the premium in price is not worth it.

Of course I have to deal with the Fast and Furious crowd a bit more now but they share a passion for performance much like the M crowd and most of them really know their stuff.

I just cant wait for the vs. 135i threads. "all you have to do is chip it and it will beat an M3!" LOL

WOOOOHOOOOO! 2000th post.

If I was to mod a 3- or 1-series, I wouldn't start with a brand new 135i (that's a waste of money to me). Buy a used 128i/328i, pull the engine; sell it; buy a used LS2; heads/cam upgrades would easily put it over 500+ hp OR leave it stock (400 hp is not shabby at all in my book). The money saved from buying a M3 could be used for chassis/brake upgrades. Now you have a car that is faster and lighter than the M3, for $25K-30K less.

That's essentially what the Vorshlag team is doing over there in the Bimmerforums in their engine conversion thread.

They even sell kits to help with the engine conversion. The guy that's heading up the conversion is currently looking for a trashed E92 Coupe for his next LSX swap (he runs a BMW shop, so body repair is not really an issue).